Nestled off the beaten path in Ahualoa, on the Big Island of Hawaii, on the Hamakua Coast above the town of Honoka'a on the slopes of Mauna Kea lies the Hawaii Island Goat Dairy.

A farmstead goat cheese operation established in January 2001, the dairy was established and operated by Dick Threlfall, on 10 acres of retired macadamia nut tree orchard.

Though Heather has passed, the dairy continues to operate and expand its product line.

Boasting a fully automated pipeline milking system designed exclusively for goats, we are able to milk 60 goats twice per day. The herd consists of several dairy goat breeds, mainly Saanens and Toggenburgs, and Nubians. and various crosses. Many of our goats are "snubians" - half Saanen, half Nubian. The goats range freely through several rotational pastures. Though we have enough goats to meet our production needs, every goat has a name. The milkers rotate to a new pasture every few days.

Although we have four bucks of our own, many of our goats are the product of artificial insemination. We have the choice of 20 different bucks for artificial insemination. Because of this we have been able to increase our overall production and cut down on the total number of goats.